The Scientific Revolution Flashcards
(44 cards)
What was science like prior to the 16th century?
Qualitative Employed logic and reasoning Lack experimentation Geocentric theory Everything made of 4 elements (earth, water, fire, air)
What were some reasons for the scientific revolution?
Ppl wanted more accurate star charts
Ppl wanted more accurate calendars
Ppl became interested in nature
What was the geocentric theory?
The earth is the center of the universe
Who developed the geocentric theory?
Ptolemy
Why was the geocentric theory accepted by everyone in old science?
It made logical sense
MAINLY it confirmed the Christian theological doctrine that the universe was perfect(ly created by God)
What new institutions were developed during this time period?
Royal courts
Royal societies & academies
New universities
Why was Copernicus called by the church? To do what?
He was called so that he could help figure out better calendars
Since the calendars were so out of sync with the seasons
What happened when Copernicus was asked to help by the church?
He developed the heliocentric theory (he made this with no observation)
What is the heliocentric theory?
The idea that the sun is the center of the universe
What was “On the Revolution of the Heavenly Spheres” (1543)?
Copernicus
Wass able to publish this so long as he stated that the heliocentric theory was a hypothetical model and that it WAS NOT A TRUE MODEL
Why didn’t the church like the heliocentric theory?
The church didn’t like heliocentric model bc it essentially proved what the church had been saying all these years as wrong
Why was Copernicus branded a heretic?
Because he stated in “On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Sphere” that his theory was simply a theory and that it wasn’t necessarily true
Why did Brahe disagree disagree with Copernicus?
Brahe believed in geocentrism
Copernicus believed in heliocentrism
What were Brahe’s contributions?
Wrote what he observed
Believed in geocentrism
What was the relation between Brahe and Kepler?
Kepler was Brahe’s apprentice
What does Kepler do with Brahe’s observations?
He uses them to reject the geocentric theory
What were Johannes Kepler contributions?
Developed the laws of planetary motion (elliptical orbits)
What were Galileo Galilei contributions?
Perfected the telescope which he used to observe moons & planets
Contradicts that the universe is perfect
What were Francis Bacon’s contributions?
Father of empiricism
Developed inductive reasoning
Purpose of science = human improvement
Who provided true empirical evidence of heliocentrism?
Galileo;
How did Galileo prove that the universe was not perfect?
With the telescope he saw the craters on the moon which proved that the universe technically wasn’t perfect if the moon wasn’t a perfect circle
What happened when Galileo contradicted the perfection of the universe?
The church didn’t like this (obvs) so they send the inquisition in 1633 and Galileo recants everything “heretical” he said
What were Newton’s contributions?
Calculus
Principia Mathematica (1687)
Universe is finely tuned watch and God is the watchmaker
Universal gravitation
What was the Principia Mathematica (1687)?
Newton
Synthesized everyone’s contributions to science
